John Fowler & Co. Steeplechaser 1877 – a glorious failure.
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gorbyThanks mates. I'm pleased how it turned out as well, and hugely relived the build is over. 🙂
Spanjaarda true work of art and love. you truly succeeded. and a wonderful homage to Ella!
Mike ThomasFantastic ending, sir! Very much a labor of love, especially with Ella's involvement.
bughunterWhat a wonderful model!
It's best to visit an exhibition - you'll get lots of questions about where to find this kit 😉
gorbyThanks very much mates, I'm quite taken aback by your lovely comments. 🙂
I know all to well what would happen if I took it to a show Frank, there would be a continuous stream of people telling me that the mechanics don't make sense and wouldn't work - something i already know. 😄 😄
Thomas Bischoffanother gorgeous build of the wonderful and weird from gorby!
Can you you send the mechanical experts to me? I still struggle to understand how the Millenium Falcon works …
gorbyThanks Thomas. 🙂
If I were to scratch-build the Milenium Falcon I'd be wondering were to fit the steam boiler and the coal bunker. 😄
Ludvík KružíkGorby, I watched with great interest the whole progress of the construction. Your scratchbuil skills are top notch and the result of your efforts is truly phenomenal. 👍
I agree with bughunter, I'm sure there would be plenty of people at the show who would want to know what kit you used to build the model. 🙂
BohrmannIt is not easy to grasp that this model is made entirely of bits of styrene and other bits of material. I had estimated the model to be larger until I saw comparison with the pot of Tamiya paint.
The little dog fits in perfectly. Respect for your skills and dedication.
gorbyThanks Bohrmann. I find scratch-building to be a good way of keeping my brain ticking over. I enjoy trying to work out how I can make things out of what I have available (god forbid I have to spend money 😄 ). Sometimes it helps me keep my mind off the world falling apart. Unfortunately, as with many modellers when I view the completed model all I see are the mistakes.
Thanks for your comment. 👍
David OrrWow, I wouldn't know it was scratch built if you hadn't told us. The dog is a nice touch.
gorbyThanks very much Capt & David.
Capt: Ella preferred watching the telly rather than listening to records. 😄
gorbyThanks very much Mick!
It always surprises me when people are so enthusiastic about my builds. When I look at the photos all I see are the things I should have done better. 😄
Thanks everyone for your lovely comments and likes.
Ludvík KružíkGorby, I'd say that's the "curse" of most modelers. No model is absolutely perfect. Only more or less close to perfect. It's natural that as the author of your model, you know all of its (even if only minimal) flaws and things you'd like to do better. The rest of us see "only" the result of your work. And I can assure you that what we see is very good indeed. 👍👍👍
Album info
The Fowler Steeplechaser was a one-off experimental traction engine. The 12 foot (3.66m) wheels were intended to reduce the ground pressure and give better propulsion in soft soil. Surprise surprise it proved to be too clumsy to be useful. As soon as I saw a photo of it I started working out how to build it. To me that's as close as it gets to love at first sight…. Incidentally, the only thing I didn't scratch-build was the steering wheel and the dog.
One of the reason I don't build ship models is because they take waaaaaay too long….I started this six months ago. Admittedly there was a couple of months when virtually no modelling was done and it was nearly binned a couple of times for various reasons.
As only two photos exist of the beast, much of the mechanical gubbins is down to 'best guess' – which can be a problem if you don't know anything about traction engines, but as I like to say….If you're talking rubbish, say it with confidence and everyone will think you know what you're talking about.
The odds are it should really be painted all black. History can be a bit dull at times, but fortunately I'm here to make amends with a much nicer colour. No need to thank me, well you can if you want. 🙂
I didn't want to mock up a side by side view of the model and the original as I didn't want it to become a spot-the-difference game (which tells you immediately that I tried it and there's enough differences for it to be too embarrassing to post 😳 ). So, just like my Robey Steamer, think of it 'in the flavour of' rather than a 100% accurate depiction.
The dog represents my recently departed, much missed pup Ella.
This is the build log: Gorby's wondrously weird whatsit – The Fowler Steeplechaser | Album by gorby (1:48)
During the build I've mentioned my Robey Steamer: And now for something completely different…. | Album by gorby (1:48)
